Page 130 of Through the Storms

The smell of coffeewafted into Lana’s consciousness. She rolled over but didn’t open her eyes.Ugh.Her body was stiff, and the bright light assaulted her eyelids. With a strong yank, she pulled the covers over her head.

“Babe.” Oakley’s voice penetrated her sleep. “It’s nearly ten o’clock.”

“Huh?” Lana didn’t remove the covers from her face.

“It’s ten, and you wanted to go to Summerton this morning. Check on Mia and Chloe.”

Lana groaned and stretched. The events of yesterday flooded into her mind, and she squeezed her eyes closed, but it didn’t erase the images. “We’ve been doing this a long time.”

“Uh-huh.” Oakley’s voice held a note of questioning.

“But this one felt personal.” Lana kept her eyes tightly shut, hoping to keep her tears at bay.

Oakley climbed into bed next to Lana and engulfed Lana in her strong arms. “I know. You kept calling out in the middle of the night.”

Lana pushed the sheet away from her face and rested her head against Oakley’s shoulder. “With as many tornadoes as we’ve seen, this one hit me different.”

“Me too.”

“But it’s not like we know Chloe all that well.” Lana rubbed her chest. “But I felt so much last night. I wasn’t an objective meteorologist.”

“You wouldn’t be human if Chloe and Mia didn’t touch you.”

Lana let out a loud sigh. “They did. And I do want to go check on them today.”

“I brought you coffee.”

“You did?”

“Don’t act so surprised.” Oakley contorted and reached for the cup on her nightstand.

Lana scooted up to a half sitting position, so she could receive Oakley’s offering. As soon as she held the hot mug in her hands, she shivered. She wasn’t sure if she’d ever get warm again. Between the soaking rain from last night and the emotions of the day, the cold had penetrated her. “Thanks,” Lana said after taking the first sip.

“It’s the least I could do.” Oakley’s face was a mask of pain and sadness.

Lana studied Oakley. She hadn’t noticed the deep crease in Oakley’s forehead until now. “You’re struggling with yesterday, too, aren’t you?”

Oakley looked away before she answered. “Yeah. It was a lot. I already wasn’t in the best place before Summerton got hit.”

“Anything you want to talk about?”

Oakley met Lana’s gaze. “Yeah, I do.” Tears welled in Oakley’s eyes. “I’m sorry. For everything. I took you for granted. I didn’tlet you know how much I appreciated your sacrifice. I’ve been foolish and selfish and just about lost you.”

“Whoa, slow down.” Lana watched Oakley’s face turn redder. “And breathe.”

Oakley loudly exhaled. “You could have gone to L.A., and it would have been all my fault.”

Lana pushed herself up farther against the headboard, put her coffee on her nightstand, and turned to face Oakley. “But I didn’t go.”

“But next time, you might.”

Oakley had a point, and Lana wasn’t going to lie. “You’re right.” Oakley’s face fell. “But we can prevent it.”

“How?”

Lana bit her lip, wanting to choose her words carefully. “First, we talk. We don’t let the physical distance create emotional distance.”

“But I don’t want the distance anymore. None of it. Certainly not the emotional, but not the physical, either.” Oakley ran her hand through her hair and down her face. Her already tousled hair spread out in every direction.